SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Simon Goh and Wang Ying Shuang, Rajah & Tann Singapore LLP
household products, including mobile and digital devices, and household appliances. 10.2 Regulatory Response Compared to North America and Europe, the fintech ecosystem in Asia (including insurtech) is relatively small, but such activities in the region are predomi- nantly centred on Singapore, which is the region’s largest insurtech hub. Against the backdrop of a rapidly evolving fintech landscape, the MAS has sought to provide a nurturing environment to help cultivate and encourage fintech experimentation, so that promising innovations can be tested in the market and have a chance for wider adoption, both in Singapore and abroad. A regulatory sandbox has been set up by the MAS to enable financial institutions as well as fintech play- ers to experiment with innovative financial products or services in the production environment but within a well-defined space and duration. It also includes appropriate safeguards to contain the consequences of failure and maintain the overall safety and sound - ness of the financial system. The Regulatory Sandbox, which is fully bespoke, was enhanced with Sandbox Express in 2019 to provide firms with a faster option for market testing of cer- tain low-risk activities in pre-defined environments. In January 2022, the MAS introduced the enhanced Sandbox Plus, which aims to further catalyse finan- cial innovation and fintech adoption by providing more effective one-stop assistance in terms of regulatory support and financial grants. Eligible applicants can obtain funding of up to SGD400,000 at a 50% fund- ing level. In August 2023, the MAS announced that it will com- mit up to SGD150 million over three years under the renewed Financial Sector Technology and Innovation Scheme (FSTI). The FSTI seeks to accelerate and strengthen innovation by supporting projects that involve the use of cutting-edge technologies or have a regional nexus, while doubling down on the MAS’ commitment to promote a vibrant technology ecosys- tem for the financial sector. As part of the FSTI and in line with the MAS’ growing emphasis on the impor-
tance of creating awareness of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, the ESG fintech grant was launched to spur the financial sector’s adoption of ESG technology solutions. These solutions should empower financial institutions in addressing their key ESG data and infrastructure challenges, supporting their mobilising of capital towards sustainable activi- ties and the tracking of their net zero transition plans and programmes. In July 2025, the MAS launched “Pathfinder”, a pro- gramme aimed at supporting financial institutions at the start of their journey to adopt artificial intelligence (AI). Pathfinder is the first of four initiatives the MAS is rolling out to guide responsible and widespread AI adoption in the financial sector. The other initiatives are focused on anchoring AI capabilities in Singapore, addressing governance and risk management issues through issuing guidelines and preparing the financial sector workforce for job roles transformed by AI. As part of its efforts to help financial institutions man- age the risks associated with AI, the MAS intends to issue a set of Guidelines on AI Risk Management. The MAS is currently consulting the market on the pro- posed guidelines, which set expectations for finan- cial institutions to identify AI risks and to implement controls across the entire AI life cycle, appropriate to the scale and risk of AI use. These guidelines will be principles-based, rather than prescriptive, as they set up guardrails to enable responsible innovation in a fast-moving space. In November 2025, the Project MindForge consor- tium also published an AI Risk Management Execu- tive Handbook, which sets out the key components of good AI risk management. This will be followed with a detailed document containing actionable insights and industry good practices next year, which can serve as a companion guide for financial institutions imple- menting the guidelines mentioned above.
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